If you are an Arkansas veteran the VA has certified as 100% totally and permanently disabled, the state will sell you a lifetime hunting license for $1.50, a lifetime fishing license for $1.50, or both together for $3.00. That is not a typo. Three dollars, once, replaces the roughly $35.50 an Arkansas resident would otherwise spend on hunting and fishing licenses every single year.
What it is
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) issues three lifetime licenses specifically for 100% disabled veterans, listed on its lifetime licenses page:
- Resident Disabled Military Veteran Lifetime Fishing License (VLF) for $1.50
- Resident Disabled Military Veteran Lifetime Hunting License (VLH) for $1.50
- Resident Disabled Military Veteran Lifetime Combination License (VLC2) for $3.00
The statutory basis is Arkansas Code § 15-42-128, as rewritten by Act 729 of 2019, which sets the $1.50 fees in law and directs that the license be plainly stamped "DISABLED VETERAN" (the statute also provides a Purple Heart version of that stamp). The General Assembly wrote its reasoning into the statute itself: the lifetime license exists "to recognize and honor the service of disabled veterans in this state."
One honest caveat up front: the $3.00 combination license covers the base licenses, not every add-on. Per AGFC, you still need the free annual Harvest Information Program (HIP) registration for migratory birds, state and federal waterfowl stamps if you hunt ducks, and a Resident Trout Permit to keep trout or fish certain waters. We cover the tier that bundles lifetime trout and duck stamps below.
What it's worth
Here is what the equivalent coverage costs a regular Arkansas resident each year, against the one-time disabled veteran price:
| License | Regular resident price | Disabled veteran lifetime price |
|---|---|---|
| Resident Sportsman's (hunting) | $25.00 per year | $1.50 once |
| Fisheries Conservation (fishing) | $10.50 per year | $1.50 once |
| Combination Sportsman's (both) | $35.50 per year | $3.00 once |
The worked example: a veteran who hunts and fishes would otherwise buy the $35.50 Combination Sportsman's License every year. The VLC2 costs $3.00 exactly once. That is the entire annual license bill gone for life, roughly $35.50 back in your pocket every year you would have bought one. Over ten seasons that is about $355 you never spend, and you are permanently insulated from future fee increases on those base licenses.
The real value is the "lifetime" part. A regular license lapses every June 30 and has to be repurchased. This one is a single $3.00 transaction, and you are licensed in Arkansas for the rest of your life.
Who qualifies (and who doesn't)
Per AGFC, you must meet both requirements:
- 100% totally and permanently disabled, with certification from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The rating must be both total (100%) and permanent. A 100% rating that is scheduled for future review does not carry the permanent-and-total designation.
- One year of Arkansas residency, with proof. Arkansas Code § 15-42-128 defines the eligible disabled veteran as a resident of the state, and AGFC requires documentation showing you have lived in Arkansas for at least a year.
Who doesn't qualify for the $1.50 and $3.00 licenses: veterans rated below 100%, veterans rated 100% but not permanently and totally, nonresidents, and new Arkansas residents who have not yet hit the one-year mark.
Rated below 100%? Arkansas has a second tier. The same statute creates a lifetime combination license and permit (AGFC code VLL2) for veterans with a service-connected rating of 70% or higher, or 50% or higher with a Purple Heart. It costs $52.50 and, unlike the $3.00 combo, includes a lifetime trout permit and lifetime state duck stamp. If that is your situation, that license is its own benefit with its own math, and the AGFC page above lists it alongside the 100% licenses.
We will not tell you what to file for or how to pursue a rating. That is between you, your representative, and the VA. Our job is showing you what your current rating already unlocks.
How to claim it
Per the AGFC lifetime licenses page, these licenses are available from the AGFC Little Rock office and by mail. Here is the path:
- Gather your VA certification. You need documentation from the VA certifying you are 100% totally and permanently disabled. A VA benefit summary letter showing the permanent and total status is the standard proof.
- Gather proof of one year of Arkansas residency. AGFC requires it for every disabled veteran lifetime license.
- Contact AGFC to apply. Call 833-345-0325, or 501-207-0326 in the Little Rock area, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and ask for the disabled veteran lifetime license application. The office is at 2 Natural Resources Drive, Little Rock, Arkansas 72205. You can complete the process in person or by mail.
- Pick your license and pay the fee. $1.50 for fishing only (VLF), $1.50 for hunting only (VLH), or $3.00 for the combination (VLC2). If you do both, the combination is the obvious pick.
- Handle the annual add-ons before you go out. Register for HIP (free) each year if you hunt migratory birds, buy state and federal waterfowl stamps if you hunt waterfowl, and get a Resident Trout Permit (currently $10.00) if you fish trout waters. The $3.00 combo does not include these, though AGFC lets you buy a Lifetime Waterfowl Permit (VLD, $7.00) and a Lifetime Trout Permit (VLT, $10.00) with the VLC2.
There is no application deadline. The only clock is the one-year residency requirement if you just moved to Arkansas.
Related benefits
A 100% permanent and total rating unlocks a stack of Arkansas benefits beyond cheap licenses:
- The Arkansas disabled veteran property tax exemption is the heavyweight at this rating: a full exemption from property tax on your homestead and personal property.
- Still serving? Arkansas also gives free hunting and fishing licenses to active duty members who entered the service as Arkansas residents.
- VA disability pay rates for 2026 shows the monthly compensation attached to a 100% rating.
- The state benefits scan surfaces every Arkansas benefit tied to your rating and service, each with an official source.
What to do next
Three dollars for a lifetime license is the easy win, but it is one line on Arkansas's list. Run the state benefits scan to see everything the state offers at your rating. Or start your free benefits scan and we will check you against over 6,000 federal and state benefits, each with a personal dollar value and an official source, so nothing you earned goes unclaimed.